


"There's another side to fire, you know"

by WeezlBot



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Angst, Crying, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, It's tagged as Solangelo but isn't really, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-12
Updated: 2019-06-12
Packaged: 2020-05-02 02:32:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19190152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WeezlBot/pseuds/WeezlBot
Summary: Leo is crashing at Will and Nico's place after a fight with Calypso. This is a bit of what ensues.





	"There's another side to fire, you know"

**Author's Note:**

> I hope the tags are all right. The tagging system still messes with me. Also, this isn't... really meant to be Willeo, but I can understand if you think it is.  
> EDIT 2/8/20: I finally fixed the formatting! Now Will's thoughts are properly italicized. Also the paragraph spacing is correct.

Will jerked awake and took a deep breath. His stomach twisted and churned.  _ Oogh. What…? Someone… hurting? Where? What’s happening? Where’s Nico?  _ He looked around for his lover, patting the bed where he should be sleeping. When he found the warm lump where Nico was, relief filled his body. Nico rolled over and stretched in response to the harsh pats. Will gave him a little kiss to make him calm down, and he did. 

Will’s senses slowly came to him.  _ Someone’s definitely in pain, but Nico seems calm. I should go check on the others.  _ He stood up and stretched, pulling on a pair of sweats to cover his undershorts and wandered out into the main room in the two-bedroom apartment that he, Nico, Lou Ellen and Cecil all split the rent on. Well, Leo Valdez was paying some of it too. He didn’t technically live there, but he was helping out in exchange for lodging after his girlfriend had kicked him out.

And it was Leo who seemed to be suffering. Will saw him sitting up in bed with his head in his hands, whimpering and sniffling. “Leo?” Will called quietly.

Leo jerked. “Wha-what’s wrong? What’s happening?” His voice was unsteady and cracking.

“Nothing, I just… are you okay?” Will asked, sitting on the edge of the pullout couch Leo was sleeping on. 

“I-I’m okay,” Leo gasped. “I-I’m okay.”

Leo saw Will’s eyebrows wrinkle with concern in the dim light. “Are you sure? Because you don’t sound like you’re okay. You sound like you’re crying.”

Leo shook his head. “I-I’m fine.” He tried to force a smile, but it didn’t really work as well as it usually did. 

Will gave him a look of sympathy, but didn’t say anything more for a few minutes. “... May I give you a hug?”

Leo’s eyes widened. Usually people found him too dirty and distasteful to hug, even his own girlfriend. “I… um… Yes, please, I’d like a… like a hug. Please.”

Will smiled and pulled him in, rubbing his back gently. “Whatever it is, it’s gonna be okay.” Leo was shaking and Will heard him squeak. “It’s okay.”

Leo felt Will’s warm body around him. He grabbed Will’s arm to keep Will from letting go of him and sobbed, burying his face in Will’s slightly hairy chest. “Oh, dude,” Will whispered. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Leo. I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t say that,” Leo hiccuped. “Don’t say that in that voice.”

“What voice?” Will asked gently. 

_ “That _ voice. That one.”

“I thought I was speaking gently to you. Am I incorrect about that?” Will asked.

“That’s the problem! You’re being so nice to me and I don’t… I don’t…” Leo’s sentence was broken by a heavy sob. “I don’t deserve any of it…”

“Leo…” Will said softly. He pulled away slightly and looked into his red, puffy eyes. “What do you think you did that was so bad that you don’t deserve any kindness?”

Leo just shook his head. He couldn’t tell Will. He didn’t want to be thrown out of another home. “I’m not a good person,” he whispered.

Will rubbed Leo’s arm and nodded slightly. “Why do you think that?”

“Because,” Leo’s voice was tight. “Because.”

“Maybe you’re just feeling sad. Is that it? You’re sad and you… you don’t know why?” Will asked. He was grasping at straws, trying to make Leo feel better.

Leo nodded. 

Will pulled him into his chest again. “Just remember this when you’re upset. Everyone deserves love and comfort, okay? I know that maybe you feel like you’ve done bad, maybe you failed something or hurt someone or embarrassed yourself or… I don’t know. But you still deserve care. Okay? Please, remember that.”

“Everyone…?” Leo sniffled.

“Almost everyone. There are only a few people that are too awful to deserve care, but they’re… very few,” Will said.

“Even murderers…?”

“I mean…” Will sighed, “That’s a sensitive subject. It really depends on the murderer. I mean, some murderers are mentally ill and couldn’t help their crimes to some degree, but others are just terrible people. Why do you ask? I mean, you aren’t the type to hurt anyone, not on purpose.”

A few tears fell from Leo’s wide, sad amber eyes. “I’m a terrible person. I light… I light fires and hurt people.” Leo’s voice broke.

“Leo…” Will’s voice sounded sad. “Leo, I have a hard time believing that. I could see it happening by accident, but I couldn’t see you hurting anyone or burning any buildings on purpose. You have a good heart, Leo Valdez. I’ve seen the way you treat machines. You’re very gentle. You treat Festus like he’s your child.”

“But… I thought you could only be called a kindhearted person if you were good to living things,” Leo squeaked.

“But you aren’t very comfortable with living things, Leo. I can tell. It’s not that you dislike them, I don’t think. You don’t hate people or animals, do you?” Will asked.

“I don’t like jellyfish or leeches,” Leo sniffled. “They’re creepy.”

“No one likes jellyfish or leeches, Valdez. Anyway, I think the reason you’re uncomfortable with people and animals is because you’re afraid of burning and hurting them. I mean, I saw the look on your face when Gremlin crawled onto your lap the first time. I mean, there was immediate flop sweat. Just immediate. I moved him off of your lap because you practically started hyperventilating. And frankly,” Will smiled, “the fact that you feel that is proof in itself that you are a wonderful, kind-hearted person.” 

Will couldn’t see very well in the thin light, but he could tell that Leo was blushing. “Thanks, Solace, but…” Leo couldn’t say it. “But what if I… hurt someone before with my fire?”

“Not on purpose, right?” Will asked. 

“Right…” Leo’s eyes closed and he buried his face in Will’s chest. “Right.” 

“Then chances are you didn’t mean it. If the person you hurt knew about your powers, they’d probably forgive you. Was it a stranger that got hurt?” Will asked gently. He knew that Leo needed to get something off of his chest, and he was determined to relieve Leo of his burden.

Leo shook his head. 

“Was it a friend?” Will asked. “Was it Jason or Piper?”

Leo let out a small wail. “Please don’t talk about Jason. Or Piper. Piper and I don’t talk anymore.”

“Okay,” Will whispered. “I understand. It hurts. Just on a tangent, you and Piper should try and put your differences aside. Friendship is very precious, especially for the socially awkward. Back to the point, that wasn’t an answer. Was it a friend?”

“N-no. Not a friend.”

Will gave him a small squeeze. “... Family?” 

There was a very, very long silence. Will hugged him tighter. Finally, Leo gave a small nod. 

“Oh, honey. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. That must hurt. Was it a sibling?” Will asked gently.

Leo shook his head. “It was… was my mother. My mother.” His voice cracked.

Will hugged him tighter, tighter than he ever thought he could hug anyone. “Oh, dude. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. If she loves you, she forgives you, I promise.”

“She’s dead,” Leo squeaked. “I killed her, Solace, I killed her-oh gods, oh gods…” He wailed again and broke down sobbing. “I loved-love, love, love, love her, love her so much… I’m sorry… I never wanted to hurt her...”

Will, for once, had no idea how to help, so he just held Leo close to his chest and buried his face in his slightly oily black hair. Leo smelled like ash and metal, and he was very warm to the touch, which Will found nice. Nico wasn’t warm to the touch, he was soft but cool. 

Will rubbed Leo’s back gently, then smelled smoke. “Leo? Do you smell that? Are you smoking?” He closed his eyes and made himself focus on something happy, ultimately deciding on he and Nico’s first kiss in the infirmary closet at Camp Half-Blood. When he opened his eyes a moment later, a thin light lit the room.  _ Good. Glad it worked. _

Sure enough, thin black smoke was rising from Leo’s body. “Hey, Leo, you’re smoking. Take a breath. Cool down. It’s okay. Here, let me get you some water.” Will got Leo a glass of water and an ice pack from the freezer, wrapping it in a towel and putting it on the back of his neck. “Is that better?”

The smoke cleared a little bit as Leo took a sip of the water. “Y-yeah. That’s a little better. I-I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. You’re just very distressed right now, that’s why you’re losing control of your powers a little bit. It’s very common among demigods. Nico gets it too. Even Lou Ellen gets it to some extent. If she’s upset enough she’ll literally disappear, the Mist wraps her so tightly it’s hard to even see her. It’s nothing to worry about, you just have to work to control it,” Will spoke soothingly. “How old were you when you hurt your mom?”

Leo sniffled. “Five?”

“Five. Makes sense. Gods, that’s so young. You were way too young to have any control.” Will shook his head. “I’m so sorry, Leo.”

“It-it’s okay. No, it’s not okay. You don’t need to apologise. You weren’t there. You didn’t do anything bad. You’ve never been anything but good to everyone your whole life,” Leo sniffled.

Will took a breath. “No, I’ve been bad to people before. Everyone has. But if you can feel bad for it, that’s the mark of a good heart. Not never being mean, not never losing your temper- but regretting it.”

Leo nodded. “I understand. You’ve said that twice now.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so tired right now,” Will giggled tiredly. 

In the resulting glow, Leo could see the dark circles beneath Will’s eyes. “You look tired, yeah. You should go back to sleep.”

“Will you be okay if I do? I’m only awake because I sensed your suffering.”

“Wait, you can sense when people are suffering?” Leo asked incredulously. 

“Well, yes. It’s a part of my Apollo-kid powers,” Will said.

“Damn. I wish I had your powers. I wish I could heal people like you do. Fire only hurts, it doesn’t heal. I want to heal others, not hurt them,” Leo giggled humorlessly.

“You do heal, Leo. You heal machinery. Besides,” Will said gently, taking Leo’s wrist, “there’s another side to fire, you know. Have you ever been stranded outside when it’s cold?”

Leo nodded, remembering those nights in the sewers, freezing and sobbing until he had no strength left to cry with. “Yeah, why?”

“I was too, once, douchey as it sounds to be bringing it up now when it’s nothing even like what you experienced and we’re talking about you here. Fortunately, I was only stranded for one night before Lou and Cecil let me crash at their place. They took me in and thawed me out by their heating unit, which I guess wasn’t fire-powered in itself but I’m pretty sure electricity comes from burning coal in power plants, so… point stands. The products of that fire healed me when I needed it more than everything. Moral of this unnecessary sob story is: if you’re freezing, fire is your best friend. Fire can heal in its own way, Leo. Your element isn’t just a weapon, it’s a system in and of itself. Like fire, you’re not just-just a weapon, you’re a living person. A wonderful person. A person who deserves care.”

Leo took a deep breath. “Thank you, Will. I still wish I were you, though. Maybe with a less-creepy boyfriend, but yeah. You.”

Will pinched him. “I happen to love the creepy boyfriend and don’t appreciate you calling him creepy. He’s a very kind and wonderful person, once you get to know him. Also, I’ve had my own hardships, not as bad as yours, but still nothing you’d want to experience. But I’m very flattered that you want to hang out with me and… be me.”

“Yeah, Solace! I think you’re awesome, okay?” Leo smiled. “I won’t forget that I deserve care if you won’t forget that you’re awesome and cool.”

Will was a little taken aback by the compliment. “Aw, shucks, Valdez. I don’t think I’m that cool, but I’ll keep it in mind.”

Leo squoze him and patted his back. “I think you’re awesome and cool, Solace.”

Will chuckled and patted back. “You’d… be the only one.”

“... What about Nico?”

“Yeah, he thinks I suck. He loves me, or so he says, but he thinks I suck,” Will said, giggling.

“... Lou and Cecil?” Leo tried.

“They love me, I love them, but they don’t think I’m cool.”

“What about… the other Apollo kids?” Leo asked again.

“Austin and Kay? Hell no. I’m their dorky homosexual med nerd older brother, I’m not cool in their eyes.”

“Um… do you have any other family?” Leo asked.

“I have an aunt who I just got back in touch with after ten years of separation,” Will replied.

“Does she think you’re cool?”

“... No? I mean, she loves me, but she doesn’t necessarily think I’m… like…  _ cool. _ That’s not really something someone thinks of their younger relative,” Will said.

 “Okay. Just a… personal question, you don’t have to answer it, but why were you sleeping on the streets for even a day if your aunt cared about you?” Leo asked.

Will’s eyes flashed. “Extenuating circumstances. I don’t want to talk about it.”

“... Okay,” Leo whispered. “Will… will you tell me about it someday? I told you about the worst thing that ever happened to me.”

“... I don’t know, Leo. I’ve never even told Lou and Cecil the whole story about how I came to live with them.”

“... Oh.”

“Yeah, no one knows the whole story but me and my aunt. And besides, it’s a family matter. Not all my friends need to know,” Will said.

“I understand,” Leo said quietly. He stayed close to Will, and Will didn’t protest. “Here’s another awkward and possibly offensive personal question. Do you hug/cuddle with your female friends in the same way you hug your male friends?”

Will took a breath. “Well, I only really ever had three female friends. One of them is dead now, but I did hug and cuddle her when she was alive. The second one is Lou, and you’ve seen me hug her, and the third one is Annabeth Chase.”

Leo paled. “Oh. Well, anyway. I’m glad to hear that you don’t just save the love for other guys.”

“Okay, now I’m offended,” Will laughed.

“Why? I didn’t think… oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that.”

“No, it’s okay. You’re forgiven. I know you aren’t like that, Valdez,” Will laughed.

There was a comfortable silence. Will patted Leo’s back. “Are you feeling a little better?”

“Lots better,” Leo smiled. “Thank you so much.”

“Oh, of course. And… may I tell you one more thing? You won’t like it, but I think it’s something that you need to know,” Will said.

“You’re sweet for me.”

“Uh… no. I’m not gay for you. What I wanted to tell you was that… shortly after Jason died, bless his soul, Nico summoned his spirit just to prove to the campers that he was really dead.”

“Oh… I wish I had been there to see him,” Leo said, his voice cracking.

Will hugged him. “Maybe Nico can summon him for you, but that’s not the point. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that his self-stated last wish was that someone should become your new best friend, to help fill the inevitable hole in your spirit that a loss of that magnitude creates. I volunteered because you seemed to like me enough to want to hang out with me. I’m sorry that I never told you the truth of me starting to hang out with you as much as I did. I’m sorry.”

Leo took in what he was told and a few more tears leaked out of his sore eyes. Jason really had cared about him, enough to make sure that he would never be without friends. And Will had cared enough to go along with it.

“I’m sorry,” Will continued. “I never wanted to make you cry. I’m so sorry.”

“Are you kidding me?” Leo asked. “That’s such… such a good thing to do, on both of your parts. I’m sorry that you feel like you made me cry!”

Will’s eyes widened. “Oh… you’re not mad?”

“No! Of course I’m not mad! I’m just…” 

“... grieving?” Will asked gently. 

Leo nodded, wiping his eyes.

“I understand,” Will whispered. “It’s gonna be okay, Leo. Or no, it won’t ever really truly feel better but it won’t… it won’t hurt quite as much.”

Leo nodded into Will’s chest. Will held him for a few more minutes, but Leo didn’t cry any more. Will just assumed that he’d run out of tears to cry. “Leo?”

Leo nodded. “Yeah?”

“One more thing. Nico was supposed to tell you this but I’m not sure if he ever did so I’m just gonna tell you right now. Jason said he ‘loves you, in a totally hetero way.’”

Leo whimpered. “I miss him.”

Will gave him a little squeeze. “I know. I miss him too, and I know Nico misses him. Lou says she misses him, but I think that’s just because she had plans to hook up with him when he and Piper split. Anyway, he was very beloved. You aren’t alone.” Will rubbed his back gently. “You aren’t alone in this.”

Leo rubbed his wet face against Will’s chest and nodded. There was a long pause as the two boys hugged their troubles away. “... Will?”

“Leo?” 

“I’m sorry for crying so much. I shouldn’t do that. I should be old enough to control my emotions,” Leo sighed, sniffling.

Will pulled away, and Leo’s heart beat faster in panic. He didn’t want Will to run away from him, because he was the only one who never had, and if Will left him, he’d break. Fortunately, Will didn’t leave. “Hey, don’t say that. I’m not upset. You needed that. I’m sorry that I made you cry again when you were feeling better.”

Leo nodded. “Thank you, Will. I appreciate it. But may I ask you two questions?”

“Sure. My first class isn’t ‘til noon tomorrow. I have almost all night.”

“Okay, one. Do you call all your friends ‘honey?’”

Will chuckled. “Pretty much. If you don’t like it, I won’t do it to you.”  
“No, it’s fine. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t… I don’t know. Anyway, two. Did Lou and Cecil live together before coming to camp? Because you kind of insinuated that they did.”

“Yeah, they did live together. You see, not to get into too much detail but Lou’s father and Cecil’s mom were really good friends and when she died, it only seemed natural for him to take in her kid. So yeah, those two were pretty much raised together,” Will answered.

“Huh,” Leo grunted. “Explains why they finish each other’s sentences. Okay. How long did you stay with them? I mean, you said that they took you in but when I arrived at camp you three were all year-rounders so…”

Will sighed and seemed to squirm a little. “Well… the answer to the question is seven years. Basically the original agreement was that I would stay until either they couldn’t feed me anymore or someone came back for me, neither of which happened mainly due to Camp Half-Blood, Cecil’s unmitigatable kleptomania and Lou’s knack for coming up with thoroughly ridiculous and brilliant criminal schemes. Also the fact that legally I’m dead.”

Leo blinked. “Wait, what?”

Will laughed uneasily. “I… uh… faked my death.” He turned away from Leo and sneezed.

Now it was Leo’s turn to let out an uneasy chuckle. “Um… was there a reason why?”

“... the… the Mafia,” Will mumbled. He turned his head and sneezed again. 

Leo could tell he was lying, but didn’t want to press any further. “Oh, dear. The Mafia. I suppose they brought guns and had dogs after you? The whole deal?”

Will smiled. “Yeah. The whole deal. Guns. dogs, assassins. Had the police in on it-”

“-and the government, too!” Leo finished the joke. A laugh escaped them both and Leo started. It had been a while since he’d had a real laugh, one he didn’t have to fake.

“Yeah!” Will lay back on the sofa bed and grinned at Leo. A bright glow haloed around his head. “I’m just lucky I survived.”

Leo snorted and lay back next to Will, staring at the ceiling. There was a long pause before Leo spoke again. “I’m honestly…” He gave a nervous laugh and looked down. “I’m honestly surprised that you stayed with me in the first place. Most people wouldn’t.”

“Why not?” Will asked. “Is it just another example of people being jerks, or…”

Leo smiled, but his eyes looked sad. “I mean, I’m kind of ugly and runty and I smell like homelessness and the forge and my hair is oily and gross and I’m always dirty and there’s always the risk that I’ll light on fire and burn the person who’s hugging me and… I don’t know. I’m just not very huggable.”

Will wiped his eyes. “I think you’re huggable, Valdez.”

“Thanks,” Leo said depressedly. 

Will reached over and patted his shoulder. “Seriously, I do. I don’t know if no one’s ever hugged you before now or what, but I care about you and I’m gonna hug you because you’re my friend. Okay?” 

Leo sniffled. “O-okay. Same goes for you.” Leo leaned his head against Will’s shoulder. Will had been too kind to him. After he and Piper’s friendship had unraveled in the wake of Jason’s death, Will had pretty much adopted him, even though Will was eleven months younger than he. 

“... I’m sorry, Leo. I really am. If I could go back in time and change… change things for you, I would. I’m sorry.”

“... That’s the gayest shit you’ve ever said,” Leo mumbled. 

“Trust me, it’s not. The gayest thing I’ve ever said was ‘Would you like to have anal sex with me?’ Also, what I said was true, so the fact that it’s gay as hell is irrelevant,” Will responded.

Leo snickered. “Yeah, you’re right. But… thank you. You’re a… you’re a good friend, Will. Thank you for letting me stay here with you.”

“Always welcome, man. You can stay here whenever you want, okay? You don’t need to pay us or reward us or even call first before dropping in. You’ve always got a home here with us.”

Leo’s heart pounded. “... Are you sure?”

“Yes, of course I’m sure. You’re my friend, of course I’m gonna put you up when you need it.”

Leo’s eyes teared up again. No one had ever been this kind to him before. “Thanks, buddy,” he tried. 

Despite his tiredness, Will grinned. “You’re welcome, dude. Are you alright for me to go back to bed now?”

Leo nodded a little. “And…”

“Okay, yeah. This never happened. I never helped you with your sadness, you never cried, we never hugged… got it.”

Leo laughed weakly. “You really do know the drill by now.”

“Mhm,” Will replied. “This isn’t my first time around this block. Demigods are proud. They don’t like to admit when they’re weak.”

Leo nodded. “I think that applies to everybody.”

“Hey, will you tell me more about this tomorrow? You know I like it when we hang out and get philosophical,” Will mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

Leo consented. Will went back to his bedroom and curled back up next to his boyfriend, kissing him lightly before curling up and going back to sleep.


End file.
